By Canadian Press

Montreal light-rail transit system shuts down on first official day of service

Jul 31, 2023 | 8:22 AM

BROSSARD, Que. — Montreal’s new light-rail transit system shut down unexpectedly this morning on its first full day of operation.

The Réseau express métropolitain, or REM, officially launched today for paying customers after more than 120,000 people rode the system for free over the weekend.

A spokesperson for the REM says a switch problem on the tracks caused service to shut down around 8 a.m. before it resumed at around 9:15 a.m.

Commuters were left waiting in long lines to take shuttle buses to ferry them across the Champlain Bridge connecting Montreal to its South Shore.

The first five stations of the 26-station, 67-kilometre electric rail network opened eight years after the project was conceived by the province’s public pension fund manager, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.

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The majority of the REM will open late next year, with an airport link to come in 2027.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2023.

The Canadian Press